Prepare to accompany one kooky Canadian as she embarks on a whimsical trip through France’s great city in this charming and entirely unique comedy which stars the two long-time Brussels-based theatre actor-directors (and real life couple) Fiona Gordon and Dominique Abel.

Fiona’s (Gordon) orderly and precise life in Canada is thrown into chaos when she receives a letter of distress from her 93-year-old Aunt Martha (Academy Award-nominee Emmanuelle Riva, Amour, 2012) who is living in Paris. Immediately jumping to action, Fiona arrives in the city of lights only to discover that Martha has disappeared. So begins a hysterical search crammed with one spectacular disaster after another as Fiona desperately scours the city with her oversized red backpack, all the while tailed by an infatuated Dom (Abel), an affable, but annoying tramp who won’t leave her alone.

Brimming with brilliantly timed pranks, amazing tricks and intricately choreographed slapstick in the vein of Charlie Chaplin and Jacques Tati, Lost in Paris will have you leaving the cinema with a gleeful skip in your step and a renewed zest for life

Six-year-old Moonie (Brooklynn Prince) lives with her mother Halley (Bria Vinaite) in a Florida motel. Along with her friends, Moonie spends the summer exploring the urban wilderness and getting into every sort of mischief. Halley, meanwhile, desperately tries to make ends meet. Kind but stern manager Bobby (Willem Dafoe) tries to keep his patience as rent goes unpaid and the hyperactive kids run wild.

In his follow-up to the acclaimed Tangerine, director Sean Baker cements his reputation as one of the great chroniclers of forgotten America. The Florida Project is a deeply sympathetic portrait of one small, neglected community. It’s the wildly energetic kids who really allow this remarkable film to soar, however - few films about childhood have ever felt this authentic.

Rugged, Indigenous Australian detective Jay Swan is arrested for drunk-driving by rookie local policeman Josh on the desolate road into the mining town of Goldstone. Jay is investigating the disappearance of a Chinese migrant worker, and while Josh is initially reluctant to help on the case, when it becomes apparent that something more sinister is happening in the area, the two men must overcome their differences and work together.

Australian director Ivan Sen’s follow-up to 2013’s Mystery Road is a complex, stylish and tense western that explores Australia’s history, whilst dealing with key contemporary issues. Like its predecessor, Goldstone is intelligent and thought-provoking cinema.

Winner - Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Cinematography,Australian Film Critics Awards 2017

Janet has just been appointed minister in the shadow cabinet – the crowning achievement of her political career. She and her husband Bill plan to celebrate this with a few close friends. The guests arrive at their home in London but the party takes an unexpected turn for the worse when Bill suddenly makes two explosive revelations that shock Janet and everyone present to the core. Love, friendships, political convictions and a whole way of life are now called into question. Underneath their cultivated liberal left-wing surface people are seething. Their dispute leads to the big guns being brought out – even in a literal sense.

For her eighth theatrical feature British director and screenwriter Sally Potter, who last took part in the Berlinale Competition with Rage in 2009, has invited a stellar cast to join her party. Beginning as a subtly witty comedy replete with sharp-tongued dialogue, the film later veers off into tragedy. When life can no longer be controlled by reason, people will fight tooth and nail to protect their seemingly stable existence.

It’s 1953, and Joseph Stalin rules over the Soviet Union with an iron fist...until one morning he’s discovered unconscious. With the dictator at death’s door, his deputies including Nikita Khrushchev (Steve Buscemi), Lavrentiy Beria (Simon Russell Beale) and Georgy Malenkov (Jeffrey Tambor) beginjostling for power. Meanwhile, they find themselves dealing with Stalin’s demanding son & daughter, planning a grand funeral, and keeping the country in order...

In his return to the big screen, Armando Iannucci - creator of Veepand The Thick of It - brilliantly blends farce and drama in this hilarious yet probing historical satire. Loaded with inspired comic moments and thrilling political chaos, The Death of Stalin also proves a provocative portrait of a society under a cruel regime.

Jean left his family and his native Burgandy ten years ago to tour the world. When learning of his father's imminent death, he returns to his childhood home. There he reconnects with his sister Juliette and his brother Jérémie. Their father dies just before the beginning of grape picking time. Over the period of a year, according to the rhythm of the seasons that follow one after the other, these three young adults will rediscover or reinvent their fraternal relationship, blossoming and maturing at the same time as the wine they make.

Ove (Rolf Lassgård) is a retiree struggling to come to terms with the death of his wife - a struggle that he angrily takes out on his neighbours by strictly enforcing the estate rules. Ove’s world is unexpectedly turned upside down when a young family move in next door. Despite his initial resistance, Ove slowly forms a bond with his new neighbours and discovers a whole new side of life...

Based on a novel and nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the 2017 Oscars, this Swedish hit is a bittersweet but charming tale of one man rediscovering himself after a devastating tragedy. Darkly comic but sensitively told, this is a true crowd-pleaser held together by a remarkable lead performance.

Quotes:
“A strong contender for feel-good film of the year” - David Hughes, Empire Magazine
“A touching comic crowd-pleaser that may call for a tissue or two by the end” - Alissa Simon, Variety

It all starts at daybreak with three young surfers on the raging seas. A few hours later, on the way home, an accident occurs. Now entirely hooked up to life-support in a hospital in Le Havre, Simon’s existence is little more than an illusion. Meanwhile, in Paris, a woman awaits the organ transplant that will give her a new lease on life.Katell Quillévéré's remarkable ensemble drama is adapted from an acclaimed novel by Maylis de Kerangal.

Tomboy Selin lives in Yakel, a village on the volcanic island of Tanna in the South Pacific archipelago of Vanuatu. Selin’s older sister Wawa has fallen in love with the village chief’s grandson, Dain, but when hostilities break out with a neighbouring rival tribe, Wawa’s hand in marriage is offered as part of the peace negotiations. Faced with separation the lovers flee the village….

Based on true events that took place in 1987, and featuring an impressive cast of non-professionals drawn from the communities whose history is being represented on screen, Tanna is a visually stunning and captivating tale of forbidden love set amongst the Yakel people, and the first feature film shot completely on Vanuatu.

Quotes:
“With its magnetic cast and Venice award-winning cinematography, this film treads the familiar theme of star-crossed lovers with shimmering vitality.” – The Guardian

“…a stirring tribute to the power of love…” - Variety

Awards/Nominations:
Best Cinematography, International Critics Week, Venice Film Festival 2015
Audience Award, International Critics Week, Venice Film Festival 2015
Australia’s official entry for the 2017 Oscars

From writer/director Tom Ford comes a haunting romantic thriller that explores the thin lines between love and cruelty, and revenge and redemption. Susan Morrow, a Los Angeles art dealer, lives a privileged yet unfulfilled life with her husband Hutton Morrow. One weekend, as Hutton departs on a business trip, Susan receives an unsolicited package left for her in her mailbox. It is a novel, Nocturnal Animals, written by her ex-husband Edward Sheffield, with whom she has had no contact for years. Edward’s note accompanying the manuscript encourages Susan to read the work and then to contact him during his visit to the city. Alone at night, in bed, Susan begins reading. The novel is dedicated to her...
...but its content is violent and devastating. While Susan reads, she is deeply moved by Edward’s writing and cannot help but reminisce over the most private moments from her own love story with the author. Trying to look within herself and beyond the glossy surface of her life, Susan increasingly interprets the book as a tale of revenge, a tale that forces her to re-evaluate the choices that she has made, and re- awakens a love that she feared was lost—as the story builds to a reckoning that will define both the novel’s hero and her own.
-Venice Film Festival 2017

Based on the true story of 5-year-old Saroo Brierley who becoming separated from his older brother one night, is carried 1600km from his home on a decommissioned train. Unable to speak the regional language, he is forced to become one of the cities many street children but is eventually adopted by an Australian couple. 25 years later his memory is triggered and he finds himself wrestling with the need to seek out his original family. Conflicted by the enormity of this and fearing what he may find if anything, the film offers raw, excellent performances from Pathel and Kidman but it is Sunny Pawar, whose remarkable and wrenching portrayal of 5 year old Saroo who steals the show.

Quotes:
“As enthralling as it is emotional’’ – David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter
“The true story of a foundling Indian boy who locates his mother years later via Google Maps is given the treatment it deserves in this intelligent, heartfelt film.’’ – Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

Debut director William Oldroyd and writer Alice Birch move from theatre to film with an ingeniously realised adaptation of an 1865 Russian novella Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District. Katherine (Florence Pugh) is a young bride, unhappily married to the nasty son of a wealthy mine owner. Unable to consummate his marriage, the husband is sadistic, refusing to even allow his young wife out of the house. Left alone when her husband is called away on business, Katherine starts to explore the grounds and initiates a passionate affair with earthy, ill-mannered stable-hand Sebastian (Cosmo Jarvis), while her increasingly concerned maid (rising star Naomi Ackie) watches on. Lady Macbeth has grand ambitions, and exudes a rare vision and talent. Proving her knockout turn in The Falling was no fluke, Pugh amazes as a heroine whose behaviour shifts from steely proud to wild-eyed and deranged.

A 'Mad' Mary McArdle returns to Drogheda after a short spell in prison - for something she'd rather forget. Back home, everything and everyone has changed. Her best friend, Charlene, is about to get married and Mary is to be her maid of honour. When Charlene refuses Mary a 'plus one' on the grounds that she probably couldn't find a date, Mary becomes determined to prove her wrong. 'A date for Mad Mary' is a tough and tender story about friendship, first love, and letting go of the glory days.

After 15 years together, Marie (Bérénice Bejo) and Boris (Cédric Kahn) are calling it quits, but until they can resolve the details of their separation agreement — most notably the division of their prize asset, the magazine-photo-worthy apartment they share with their young twin daughters — they're still living together. The latest feature from acclaimed Belgian director Joachim Lafosse (Our Children) is about the ties that bind us after love has gone.

Marie is the breadwinner in the relationship, but it was her family's wealth, not her salary, that allowed the couple to purchase their stylish apartment. This is a fact that Boris, a contractor currently between jobs, never lets her forget, since it was his renovation work that added significant value to the property. As Marie and Boris argue over everything — finances, who's taking the girls to soccer, and even passing the cheese plate at dinner — After Love reveals the complexities of their relationship and the depth of the cracks in it.

Lafosse deftly avoids taking sides in this absorbing family drama, inviting the audience to see that both parties are right, and both are wrong. Relentlessly observant of his characters' daily routines and oscillating emotions, Lafosse uses his trademark confined setting and tightly controlled handheld photography to create a claustrophobic environment, enveloping us in the gathering storm that is this couple's relationship. With outstanding, genuine performances from Bejo and Kahn, the subtle and powerful After Love reminds us that sometimes, no matter how much beauty is to be found in our immediate surroundings, we just need to get out. - Toronto International Film Festival 2016

Deep in the forests of the Pacific Northwest, isolated from society, a devoted father dedicates his life to transforming his six young children into extraordinary adults. But when a tragedy strikes the family, they are forced to leave this selfcreated paradise and begin a journey into the outside world that challenges his idea of what it means to be a parent and brings into question everything he’s taught them. - Cannes program 2016

Adele Haenel stars as young doctor Jenny Davin, who refuses to answer the buzzer to her surgery after hours one night. She is informed the next day that the caller, a young, unidentified woman has been found dead nearby. Consumed by guilt Jenny commits to finding out the identity of the young girl, so that she can be buried with her name, reclaiming her identity. Driven by an overriding sense of moral responsibility Jenny puts herself in the middle of an investigation that endangers her also.

Another complex look at social compromises, the Dardenne Brothers deliver an engaging and moving work with an intense, internalised performance for Haenel as Jenny, whose single minded pursuit of justice will resonate with audiences.

Jesus (Héctor Medina) a shy, delicate, struggling hairdresser finds a genuine opportunity to enrich his life when he is given the chance to perform as a Drag Artist. But when Jesus’abusive estranged father returns, he forcefully forbids the young man from performing. Jesus must decide to either fulfil his potential or wilt under the dictate of his father. What unfolds is a bittersweet story of pain, regret, and reconciliation, as the two men learn to know and respect each other for the first time. Featuring boisterous and often heart-breaking drag performance, Paddy Breathnach’s Oscar-shortlisted crowd-pleaser is a tender and compassionate tale of finding one’s true voice.

Oscar winner Jean Dujardin, as charismatic as ever, returns to SIFF in this new romantic comedy from Laurent Tirard, the director of Molière (SIFF 2007's Closing Night film). Diane (Virginie Efira, SIFF 2014's Turning Tide) is a successful lawyer three years removed from her divorce, and she has been romantically challenged ever since. But her luck changes one afternoon when a stranger calls her flat, having found her cell phone and wanting to return it. Over the phone, Alexandre is both funny and charming, and the pair develop an easy chemistry with each other, leading to a date of sorts to return her lost phone. Eagerly arriving at the appointed time and place, Diane is caught completely off-guard when Alexandre arrives—all 4'6" of him. (He literally has to hop up into his café chair.) At first his stature makes Diane uncomfortable, but she soon discovers that Alexandre is pretty much the complete package—witty, intelligent, handsome—so who cares if she has to bend down to kiss him? However, Alexandre and Diane will have to face many other romantic challenges, including a full-sized rival as well as public gawking and the judgement of society, if they are going to make it to their happily-ever-after in this delightful comedic romp. -Seattle International Film Festival 2016

A lonely baker has his life (and business) reinvigorated when he hires an elderly woman with an uncanny culinary skill and a mysterious communion with nature, in this graceful, quietly moving drama from Japan’s Naomi Kawase (The Mourning Forest, Still the Water).

Adapted from the novel by Durian Sukegawa, the new film by Naomi Kawase (who last appeared at the Festival in 2014 with Still the Water) is a graceful ode to the invisible essences of existence — to the beauty and joy we can discover once we learn to listen to nature and feel the life that is coursing through and all around us.

"An" is a delicious red bean paste, the sweet heart of the dorayaki pancakes that Sentaro (Masatoshi Nagase) sells from his little bakery to a small but loyal clientele. Absorbed in sad memories and distant thoughts, Sentaro cooks with skill but without enthusiasm. When seventy-six-year-old Tokue (Kirin Kiki) responds to his ad for an assistant and cheerfully offers to work for a ridiculously low wage, Sentaro is skeptical about the eccentric old lady's ability to endure the long hours. But when she shows up early one morning and reveals to him the secret to the perfect an — listening to the stories of wind, sun and rain that the beans have to tell — Sentaro agrees to take her on, trusting her strange ability to connect with nature. With Tokue's new home-cooked an recipe, Sentaro's business begins to flourish — but along with her smiles and culinary skill, Tokue is afflicted with an illness that, once revealed, drives her into isolation once again.

Using cookery to explore her perennial theme of communion with nature, in Sweet Bean (An) Kawase also poignantly addresses the discrimination that condemns many like Tokue to live their lives segregated from the rest of society. Beautifully shot and quietly moving, Sweet Bean (An) is a humble masterpiece from a singularly accomplished filmmaker. – Giovanna Fulvi, Toronto International Film Festival 2015Winner Audience Award Cork International Film Festival, 2015Winner Audience Award São Paulo International Film Festival, 2015

An aging schoolteacher (Gabriel Byrne) grappling with the recent death of his photojournalist wife (Isabelle Huppert) attempts to reconcile with his two very different sons (Jesse Eisenberg and Devin Druid), in the first English-language feature by acclaimed Norwegian director Joachim Trier (Reprise).

With his first English-language feature, Joachim Trier (whose previous films Reprise and Oslo, August 31 both played at the Festival) reconfirms his well-earned reputation as one of the finest young European directors to emerge in the past decade. Working with his co-writer and long-time collaborator Eskil Vogt, in Louder Than Bombs Trier expertly (and sometimes audaciously) shuttles between different timeframes and character perspectives as he investigates the dynamics of a troubled family.

Gene Reed (Gabriel Byrne) is an aging high-school teacher who, while grappling with the sudden death of his photojournalist wife Isabelle (Isabelle Huppert), is also experiencing difficulties connecting with his youngest son Conrad (Devin Druid), a painfully shy loner who finds his only outlet on the internet. When Jonah (Jesse Eisenberg), Gene's wunderkind eldest son — a promising young academic who has become an insufferably moralizing pedant — returns to the family home almost immediately after the birth of his first child, Gene seizes upon the opportunity to try and mend the rifts in the familial fabric. This last-chance bid for reconciliation is made all the more urgent by an upcoming, posthumous exhibition of Isabelle's work, which may lead to a public revelation of some of the Reeds' darker secrets.

Trier displays a truly novelistic sense of character and detail as he probes the fault lines of this singularly unhappy clan, and he also mines sly comedy from the generational gap between Gene and his sons. Powerful, memorable, and psychologically acute, Louder Than Bombs is both a lament for what has been lost and an affirmation of what remains. – Steve Gravestock, Toronto International Film Festival 2015

Retired composer and conductor Fred (Michael Caine) is taking treatments at a luxury Swiss spa, watched over by his daughter (Rachel Weisz). He’s there with his old friend Mick, a film director (Harvey Keitel) who, unlike Fred, doesn’t plan on giving up his career just yet. Both while away the time reminiscing about their young days and their past loves and, fully aware of their age, they have no illusions about the future. They observe the lives of dozens of colourful individuals whom they meet or simply glimpse passing by, and who compel them to reflect on youth and beauty.

Here, Paolo Sorrentino once again stages a “choral theatre of life,” where the motley characters surrounding the central figures each have a fundamental role to play – not as part of the almost nonexistent story, but as one of the constituents of the filmmaker’s design. This latter is stunningly rendered via image and music and, instead of a sense of decline and finality, the impression is more one of hope, reinforced by a wonderful and strongly emotive ending.

Sorrentino’s new film was considered one of the best works in this year’s Cannes competition but, like The Great Beauty (2013), it failed to win a prize.
– Karlovy Vary International Film Festival 2015

Packed off to a foster home after her father is institutionalized, a rebellious young Irish girl resolves to bust her dad out of the hospital where he's been confined, in this spirited coming-of-age tale from celebrated memoirist and first-time feature director Simon Fitzmaurice.

The debut feature from Irish writer-director Simon Fitzmaurice is a spirited coming-of- age story that traces the journey of a strong-willed young woman as she weathers loss, upheaval, and rebirth.

"If you hide from death, you hide from life." Teenage Emily (Harry Potter's Evanna Lynch) inherits this mantra from her father Robert (Michael Smiley), an author and philosopher of sorts, whose lectures and writings encourage others to live for the moment at the expense of social niceties.

But following the tragic death of Emily's mother, Robert starts to change, and his visionary eccentricities now appear to be symptoms of mental illness. Robert is soon institutionalized, and Emily is sent away to live with foster parents and attend a school where everyone dismisses her as a weirdo — everyone, that is, except Arden (George Webster), an awkward but endearing classmate with family problems of his own.

When Emily suddenly decides to travel north to bust her father out of his psychiatric hospital, the hopelessly smitten Arden joins her on a renegade road trip that will give both youngsters their first taste of what it truly means to be alive.

Brimming with images of freedom, from the wide open road to the vast expanse of the sea, and buoyed by an arrestingly confident performance from Lynch, My Name is Emily will resonate with the young and young-at-heart alike. This is a stylish and assured film about self-discovery as an ongoing adventure. – Michele Maheux, Toronto International Film Festival 2015Winner - Best Cinematography in an Irish Feature, Galway Film Fleadh 2015

Five Turkish adolescent sisters have their basic freedoms unjustly stripped from them in director Deniz Gamze Erguven's understated feminist drama.
The word Mustang, which is also the evocative title of Turkish-French filmmaker Deniz Gamze Erguven's stirring first feature, conjures vivid images of bands of wild horses roaming the untamed American West, their manes flying and their defiant spirits resistant to being broken. Those qualities also fit the five young sisters in this intimate drama, whose independence and burgeoning sexuality prompt their alarmed guardians to sequester the girls in a systematic campaign to break their unity and tame them into traditional female roles.

The eloquent story's art house prospects will be helped by its stinging relevance in a world where young women across many backgrounds continue to be culturally repressed.

Unfolding in a remote Black Sea coastal village in northern Turkey, the film opens as the orphaned sisters begin their summer break. The youngest of them, Lale (Gunes Sensoy), shows a particular fondness for her female teacher (Bahar Karimoglu), who is returning to Istanbul. Giddy with the euphoria that accompanies the end of any kid's school term, the girls walk home along the rocky beach, splashing about in innocent horseplay with some male classmates. With their long dark hair and slender bodies, they look like beautiful fairytale nymphs as they clown around, later raiding a farmer's overgrown apple orchard.

But their cheerful energy turns to dismay as their strict grandmother (Nihal Koldas) ushers them into their house on a hill. Informed by a villager who saw them cavorting on the beach, she fears the girls' virtue and their marriage prospects have been tarnished. Her hysteria is fanned by the angry reaction of their Uncle Erol (Ayberk Pekcan), who is not above taking advantage of their supposed disgrace in the case of one of the girls. Despite the sisters' vehement denial of any wrongdoing, which is verified by medical examination, they are locked up behind closed doors. Potentially corrupting influences like phones and computers are removed, and they are outfitted in shapeless dung- colored frump dresses for rare outings in the village.

As Lale describes it in a voiceover, the house becomes a "wife factory." The girls are given instruction by local women in traditional cooking and homemaking as their grandmother sets the wheels in motion to arrange marriages for each of them, starting with the eldest, Sonay (Ilayda Akdogan).

There are mordant echoes here of the five Bennet daughters in Pride and Prejudice, whose mother's anxiousness to get them married off is a matter of financial rather than moral urgency. However, this is no comedy of manners. The more direct comparison is with the Lisbon sisters in The Virgin Suicides, but those doomed sirens become architects of their own isolation, almost as much as their overprotective parents.

Erguven and her co-screenwriter Alice Winocour (whose film Maryland screens in Un Certain Regard) are more interested in the girls' instinct for self-preservation as they strike back against their enforced captivity and the hurried plans being made for them. This binds them even closer together, at first in displays of harmless, often amusing rebellion and outspokenness, but gradually in spiraling desperation as some of them slide into numbed, even tragic acceptance. In an interview, Erguven referenced the multiheaded hydra creature from Greek mythology, and the film shows the steady weakening of the girls' collective force as each "head" is separated and subdued.

Shot in unfettered, naturalistic style in the atmospheric locations, Mustang has something of a frontier feel, an aspect nourished by the melancholy score of Warren Ellis, the Nick Cave collaborator known for his work on such unconventional Westerns as The Proposition and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. But Erguven's film is also a suspenseful if somewhat improbable prison-break movie (albeit one that eschews standard devices of the genre), in which the oppressive wardens believe they are acting in the best interests of their charges.

Only one of the five principals, Elit Iscan, has screen-acting experience, but all of them (the remaining two are Tugba Sunguroglu and Doga Doguslu) register strongly, both as individuals and as part of a tight-knit unit whose bone-deep allegiance no doubt was fortified by the loss of their parents.

What makes the transfixing film so effective is that the director refuses to portray them simplistically, as misunderstood angels, and she has enough trust in her audience to leave the drama's implicit feminism unstated. The story's quiet power comes from its sensitive observation of the characters as normal, emancipated young modern women, with healthy desires and curiosities, whose supposed transgressions are imagined and then magnified in the judgmental minds of others.
– David Rooney, The Hollywood ReporterWinner Label Europa Cinema Cannes Film Festival 2015 Winner LUX Film Prize European Parliament 2015

Sometimes the lightest touch has the greatest impact. That is certainly the case in this deft, clean and very moving drama. The zero-sum game that is the "law of the market" (the French title)—wherein if one wants a job another must be let go—lies at the heart of Stéphane Brizé’s profoundly humanist and exceedingly timely film. Without blame or rancour it makes plain the often humiliating and soul-destroying choices foisted upon ordinary people just trying to make a living in today’s economic climate. Vincent Lindon is superb as Thierry, a mechanic who’s been unemployed for over a year and who has endured dashed hopes and constant rejection in his search for work. When he finally lands a job in security at a big-box supermarket, he is forced into situations where he must make decisions that go against everything he believes in... — Vancouver International Film Festival 2015

"A companion piece to the Dardenne brothers’ recent Two Days, One Night in its strong sense of labor and justice in an often unjust economy, Brizé’s sixth feature film... is [a] low-key but powerfully affecting social drama... [The director] draws a lead performance from frequent collaborator Vincent Lindon that is a veritable master class in understated humanism... Taking a page from the Dardennes, Brizé has also surrounded Lindon with an entire cast of non-professional performers playing lightly dramatized versions of themselves—a strategy that, to its great credit, will go unnoticed by most viewers, the venerable French leading man blending effortlessly into his surroundings..."—Scott Foundas, VarietyWinner – Best Actor, Cannes Film Festival 2015

When Val (Regina Casé) left her home to work thousands of miles away as a live-in housekeeper for Fabinho (Michel Joelsas) in Sao Paulo, she carried the guilt of leaving her young daughter Jessica behind with relatives. Now, 13 years later, Jessica (Camila Márdila) shows up in Sao Paulo, and her presence throws into disarray the unspoken class barriers within Fabinho’s home. – Chicago Critics Film Festival 2014

“This is the sort of savvy, socially conscious crowdpleaser that occupies a rare middle ground between genteel and intellectual world cinema.” – Geoff Berkshire, Variety

Kate is in the middle of preparations for her 45th wedding anniversary when her husband Geoff suddenly receives news which pulls him back into the past. Fifty years ago his then girlfriend had a fatal accident in the Swiss Alps. Now, finally, her body has been found, frozen in ice and time. Kate and Geoff are both shocked but are unable to share their insecurity with each other. He retreats ever more into a distant world of memories whilst Kate endeavours to suppress her burgeoning jealousy and anxiety with pragmatism. She needs to concentrate on selecting the music and menu for the party and taking care of the other arrangements.
Outwardly, everything is business as usual. But the camera cautiously registers how a well-tuned coexistence is going out of kilter. Whether over a shared breakfast or a lonely wander through the town, Kate feels more and more like a stranger in her own life. 45 Years tells the story of two people who, caught up in unexpected emotions, are forced to bolster themselves against unfamiliar feelings and, in doing so, have the rug pulled out from under their feet. After 45 years, which feeling will prevail on the couple's big day? – Berlin Film Festival 2015
Wednesday 24 February – Fidelio, Alice’s JourneyFidelio, l’odyssee d’Alice
Dir: Lucie Borleteau, France 2014, 94 mins, Cert: CLUB
Language: French
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7UlMYgTbmo

The ‘journeys’ that Alice (a wonderfully free-spirited Ariane Labed) sets off on are physical, sexual and emotional. She has become a sailor – working as a mechanic on freighters – not necessarily to see the world but rather to find herself.

When she boards the rickety Fidelio as a last minute replacement for a crew member killed in an accident, she finds the captain is her former lover Gael (Melville Poupaud).

Labed won the best actress award at the Locarno Film Festival for her performance. – Edinburgh International Film Festival 2015Best Actress, Locarno Film Festival 2014Europa Cinemas Label Award, Locarno Film Festival 2014
★★★★ The Irish Times

Winner of the Golden Bear at this year’s Berlinale, Panahi’s latest is perhaps his most playful film yet. Riffing on the narrative structure pioneered in Kiarostami’s 10, it’s mostly set and entirely shot from inside a car: a taxi of sorts, with Panahi playing himself as an affable amateur cabbie. After giving rides around Tehran to a motley array of passengers – from a rabid reactionary and a liberal teacher to a man selling pirate DVDs and women heading to a shrine – he finally collects his niece, a sassy youngster making a little movie herself for school. Cue a discussion of how film should represent reality (or not!): a subject clearly close to Panahi’s heart, given his standing with the Iranian authorities. Despite its concern with ethics, aesthetics and politics, the film oozes disarming charm and mischievous wit, slyly reminding us that cinema, for better or worse, always trades in illusion. - Geoff Andrew, BFI London Film Festival 2015

Antoine (Gustave Kervern) is a forty-something rock singer with insomnia and stage fright. After deciding that a music career is too stressful, he decides to look for another job. Despite Antoine having no relevant experience, retired resident Serge (Feodor Atkine) is persuaded by his wife Mathilde (Catherine Deneuve) to employ him as the caretaker for their quiet Parisian apartment building.

As Antoine gets to grips with the quirky characters inhabiting the apartments, it quickly becomes obvious that he is unable to handle his new responsibilities. But when Mathilde’s mental state comes into question, she finds a friend and confidante in Antoine.

Salvadori and his actors skillfully use humour here to sensitively explore some serious themes, including mental health and loneliness.Presented with the support of the French Embassy and the Institut Français.

The Grump (Antti Litja) is a stubborn, sour-faced old farmer with a rose-tinted view of the past. After a bad fall, he is forced to move from his family farm to the city home of his career-focussed daughter-in-law. Struggling to exist in this new world, the old man seems to do nothing but clash with everyone around him. But slowly it becomes apparent that the old fellow could still teach the modern world a trick or two!

Based on the popular novel by Finnish author Tuomas Kyrö, The Grump is a charming and comedic culture-clash satire from up-and-coming director Dome Karukoski (Lapland Odyssey).

Wild Tales is a collection of six crazy, absurd and hilarious stories of people who are stressed out or depressed by the drive for success, competition and the inequality of the world we live in. With its underlying theme of violence and vengeance, this Argentinean black comedy-drama boasts an eclectic ensemble cast. Co-produced by Pedro Almodóvar, Wild Tales is Argentina’s submission to the 87th Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Language Film category. - Dubai International Film Festival 2014

Claire (Anaïs Demoustier) is grieving the loss of her lifetime best friend, who has left behind a husband, David (Romain Duris), and a newborn baby. On an unannounced visit, a shocked Claire discovers David nuzzling his infant while wearing the clothes of his dead wife. Unfazed, David explains that his former wife had always been aware of this particular idiosyncrasy. In time, Claire begins to overcome her initial reaction, and helps David to create his own female persona to inhabit.

In this, his latest cinematic offering, Ozon has delivered a well-paced psychological drama that investigates grief and identity. The New Girlfriend is also a funny, good-natured poke at the mores and peccadilloes of France’s bourgeoisie in a film that effortlessly fuses the best of Hitchcock and Almodóvar. - Alliance Francaise French Film Festival 2014

Oscar nominations for The Buena Vista Social Club and Pina attest to the way that the documentary seems to bring out the best in Wim Wenders. The Salt of the Earth is no exception as it pays tribute to the extraordinary life of photographer and environmentalist Sebastião Salgado.

Working with Salgado’s son Juliano Ribeiro, Wenders has created a film entirely in keeping with the humility of the subject. Hauntingly beautiful images are matched with illuminating testimony to create an utterly absorbing portrait. Salgado is a magnetic personality and he recalls some of the major projects of his career, including Workers and Genesis, an affectionate love letter to the planet.

Salgado recalls lengthy periods of his life when he saw ample evidence of death and destruction. Typically, he found creative ways to transcend that despair and the film ends in hope as we learn of the Salgado family’s success in re-building an entire ecosystem at the Instituto Terra in Brazil. A fitting tribute to an inspirational figure. - Allan Hunter / Screen International

When an English couple moves into a quaint village in Normandy, their curious neighbor Martin finds himself obsessed with the stunning young wife Gemma. His fascination leads to strange behavior; a harmless but dedicated stalker, he’s relentless in his hope she’ll return his affection. He compares her to Madame Bovary, the adulterous housewife character from Gustave Flaubert’s book of the same name. While his fantasies begin to materialize, it’s not Martin she ends up cheating with. Instead, it’s the dashing but somewhat cocky Niels, a law student who lives nearby. Their affair only fuels Martin’s obsession, who constantly spies on them and eventually hatches a plan to break them up. But Gemma’s infidelity issues go much further than he thought, as she’s tangled in a web that could destroy her. Gemma Bovery isn't just a tale of love and obsession, though. It also balances drama with the comedic antics of Martin, played brilliantly by Fabrice Luchini. It’s a surprisingly fun rom-com both sexes can enjoy. - Cleveland International Film Festival 2014

The mountainous scenery of Lesotho provides the canvas for director Andrew Mudge’s profoundly visual story, which tells the tale of Atang: a young man obliged to make a pilgrimage from the bustle of Johannesburg to his native Lesotho upon learning that his father has passed away.

There, Atang is reunited with childhood friend Dineo, with whom he discovers a romantic spark. But her disapproving father whisks Dineo away and sends Atang back to Jo’burg. Resolving to win her back, Atang enlists the help of a young orphan boy to guide him through the arresting rural terrain.

The first film ever to be produced in Lesotho, The Forgotten Kingdom is a beguiling quest steeped in the history and culture of the Basotho people. - Cambridge Film Festival 2013Winner – Audience Award, Cambridge Film Festival 2013Winner – Audience Award, Florida Film Festival 2013

In director Ruben Östlund’s film a father, Tomas, puts his own safety ahead of his family’s in a perceived disaster. The feared disaster does not actually take place, but in illustrating Tomas’ behavior under duress, the event sends fault-lines through the relationship between his family and himself. This engaging drama follows the aftermath of this uncertain, intense, and undeniable moment. - Calgary Film Festival 2014

Friday, January 9, 2015

All films start at 8.30 pm in the Skerries Sailing Club.
Tickets /
membership at the door.WednesdayJanuary28 – Life of CrimeDir: Daniel Schechter, USA 2013, 94 mins, Cert: ClubStarring: Jennifer Aniston, Isla Fisher, Tim Robbins, Will Forte, Jon Hawkes, Mos DefLanguage: EnglishTrailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQvnhJuhM3g&list=PLeACCobo_9B9iFzQAeZq7lzbXEJ21wSaRJennifer Aniston, Tim Robbins and John Hawkes star in this wildly entertaining caper, adapted from a book by Elmore Leonard, about two ex-cons whose plan to kidnap a real estate developer’s wife doesn’t go quite as smoothly as expected.Author Elmore Leonard's characters Ordell Robbie and Louis Gara were made famous on the screen by Samuel L. Jackson and Robert De Niro in Quentin Tarantino's Jackie Brown. Stepping into the skin of Robbie and Gara for a very different adventure set fifteen years prior to the events of Jackie Brown, yasiin bey (perhaps better known to audiences as Mos Def ) and John Hawkes star in Daniel Schechter's new seventies caper comedy, Life of Crime.Fresh out of prison, where they bonded over their similar convictions for grand theft auto, Ordell and Louis (Hawkes) have already decided to team up when they catch wind of Frank Dawson (Tim Robbins), a Detroit property developer and secret embezzler. Their plan is simple: they'll kidnap Frank's country-club wife, Mickey (Jennifer Aniston), and hold her for ransom. What the duo didn't count on is that Frank's affections have turned to his perky young mistress, Melanie (played by the always charming Isla Fisher), and he may not be in a rush to rescue his spouse. Eliciting Mickey's insider knowledge, the crooks shift gears, frantically devising a new plan.Also featuring great performances from Will Forte and Seana Kofoed, Life of Crimeutilizes its all-star cast and impeccable art direction to build an entertaining and hilarious period piece. Evoking the spirit of some of the greatest film adaptations of Leonard's novels, Get Shorty, Out of Sight and, of course, Jackie Brown, Schechter serves up a twisty comedic gem. - Toronto International Film Festival 2014WednesdayFebruary11– Bright Days AheadLes beaux joursDir: Marion Vernoux, France 2013, 94 mins, Cert: ClubStarring: Fanny Ardant, Laurent Lafitte, Patrick Chesnais, Jean-Francois Stevenin, Fanny Cottencon, Catherine LachensLanguage: FrenchTrailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OLL5Ptu6T0

In this sophisticated French drama, a woman in her 60s (film icon Fanny Ardant, 8 Women, Confidentially Yours) falls for a much younger man (Laurent Lafitte, Little White Lies), her computer teacher at the local seniors’ club. As she finds herself courting danger—taking her young lover to places they could easily be discovered by her husband (Patrick Chesnais, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly)—she must decide if her retirement will mark the end for her marriage, or a new beginning. Director Marion Vernoux constructs a subtle and sultry vision of a woman struggling to evaluate the role she has played for others versus the life she wants for herself. - Ashley Havey / Tribeca Film Festival 2014WednesdayFebruary25– In Order of DisappearanceKraftidiotenDir: Hans Petter Moland, Norway 2013, 116 mins, Cert: ClubStarring: Stellan Skarsgård, Bruno Ganz, Pål Sverre Hagen, Birgitte Hjort Sørensen, Anders Baasmo Christiansen, Gard B. EidsvoldLanguage: NorwegianTrailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cG-exgIwPQ

Norway, winter. Introverted and hard-working Nils drives the powerful snow plough that keeps open the roads and mountain passes of the inhospitable frozen landscape where he lives. He’s just been named citizen of the year for his efforts when he receives news that his son has died of a heroin overdose. Refusing to believe the official version of his son’s death, he begins a covert search for the boy's alleged murderers. A surprising turn of events causes him to become a tough-as-nails and feared underworld hero – one whose identity nobody knows. A gruesome black comedy full of impressive images of an endless wintry-white landscape which Nils knows how to use to his advantage. The film deploys dark comedy to depict Nils’ exploits in the realm of gangsters, which is characterised by a delicately nuanced portrayal of the mentalities of Swedish, Norwegian and Serb mafiosi with Bruno Ganz putting in an appearance as a Serb mafia boss. - Berlin Film Festival 2014

WednesdayMarch11– IdaDir: Pawel Pawlikowski, Poland 2013, 80 mins, Cert: 15AStarring: Agata Kulesza, Agata Trzebuchowska, Dawid OgrodnikLanguage: PolishTrailer: www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWKgYlwKFs4&list=PLb5Gvke6-GlwGH-7fkVWY5TOlhuwXXg05Anna has spent her whole life in cloistered devotion to God. Before taking her vows, she meets her hard-living aunt and discovers that her Jewish parents were murdered during the Nazi occupation. This disciple of Christ and cynical, world-weary Communist then set off on a road trip which becomes a voyage of personal discovery and reconciliation.Ida addresses the national burden of guilt and forgiveness in the aftermath of World War II. Pawel Pawlikowski’s film stimulates metaphysical debate on faith and the nature of events. The director’s painterly, meticulous approach to composition results in a visually-hypnotic piece of grace and serenity. - Mark Ryall / access CINEMAWinner - Best Film, London Film Festival 2013Winner – International Critics Prize, Toronto International Film Festival 2013

In order to secure a vital factory contract, the residents of a small Newfoundland fishing village conspire to charm a big-city doctor into becoming the town’s full-time physician in this sparkling comedy from director Don McKellar (Last Night) and screenwriter Michael Dowse (The F Word).Like many affected by the collapse of the fishing industry, residents of this once-thriving settlement are driven to seek employment in the city, or, worse, queue for government assistance. Their future begins to look brighter when a plastics manufacturer proposes to set up shop – until they learn that the contract calls for a resident doctor. Enter Dr Lewis (Taylor Kitsch), an ethically suspect cosmetic surgeon. In a riotous attempt to charm him, the villagers fall over themselves trying to persuade him that their seemingly sleepy hamlet is secretly a hotbed of cosmopolitan sophistication.The Grand Seduction’s gentle, whimsical reflections are poignant and uproarious by turns, and brought to life through superb performances from Brendan Gleeson and Canadian icon Gordon Pinsent. Shot on location in Trinity Bay, the film is certain to delight even the saltiest cynic. - Toronto International Film Festival 2013WednesdayApril15– The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared Hundraåringen som klev ut genom fönstret och försvannDir: Felix Herngren, Sweden 2013, 114 mins, Cert: 15AStarring: Robert Gustafsson, Iwar Wiklander, Mia Skaringer, David Wiberg, Jens Hulten, Alan FordLanguage: SwedishTrailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wTWSrxJQ9M

Jonas Jonasson’s witty, feel-good international best-seller gave pleasure to millions and proved that it is never too late to let a little adventure in your life. The eagerly awaited screen version stars Robert Gustafson as the Zelig-like Allan Karlsson who quietly escapes from the celebrations for his one hundredth birthday and takes to the road. Little misunderstandings and unfortunate coincidences soon find him in possession of a suitcase of cash and being hotly pursued by crooks and criminals. It’s hardly going to trouble a man who played a vital role in making the atomic bomb, has known several world leaders and participated in some of the key events of the last century. An outrageous delight. - Glasgow Film Festival 2013